


Purpose

by Jadesymb



Series: Journey to Purpose [1]
Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: (eventually) - Freeform, Canon Temporary Character Death, Canon-Typical Violence, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Internalized Homophobia, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:55:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25553923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jadesymb/pseuds/Jadesymb
Summary: Nicolo and Yusuf dreamed of each other before they met and killed each other many times.This is one way that might have happened.
Relationships: Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Series: Journey to Purpose [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1851751
Comments: 4
Kudos: 81





	Purpose

**Author's Note:**

> I have fallen in love with this movie, this comic, and these characters. I didn't mean to write this fanfiction, it just happened.

Nicolo had always expected to become a priest. As the youngest son with many older brothers, it was the best option open to him. When he also realized that he had little interest in finding a wife and committing carnal acts with her, it only further cemented his plans to join the priesthood. He hadn't predicted the crusades, but if that was where God called him to be, then he must go. Dying during one of the first battles was upsetting, but also less of a surprise than the crusades themselves. The rising from the dead? That was another story altogether. 

Nicolo is honestly not precisely sure which blow killed him. He was in the middle of a war zone, surrounded by enemies, and he was already wounded and tired from fighting. He remembers faltering due to exhaustion, a slip in his form, a stagger in his step, and suddenly an intense pain in the back of his head. There was a bright flash, and then he was suddenly submerged in a vision, freed of his body. He dreamt of a beautiful man with curly dark hair and kind eyes, placing himself between a child and a crusader. The man fell at the hands of Nicolo's fellows, his wounds grievous, but Nicolo thinks the child might have managed to escape. This strange vision was interspersed with others, images of two women riding horses, and laughing by firelight. 

The vision faded, and suddenly Nicolo gasped painfully and pulled himself up from the battlefield. The ground around him was littered with the dead, but the sounds of fighting are muted, distant. He looked frantically at where he expected his wounds to be and was confused by the lack of them. He found that his armor and his clothing was ruined, soaked in blood, but yet he finds no signs of any wounds on his skin. Nicolo had done his best to give himself to God, even though he knew he might rot in hell for his unclean thoughts. Awakening back into life had not been a possibility to him. Was he mistaken? Did he not die? But he knew he had been horribly wounded, and now, not even a mark. He ran a physical inventory of his person and could find no ache, no bruise, nothing out of place, no minor twinge of pain. His body felt born anew, while his mind raced into a panic, trying to make sense of everything. Perhaps God had performed a miracle? Perhaps Nicolo had a purpose to fulfill before God might let him rest? 

*****************

Yusuf died for the first time in battle, defending his home. His death had not been fast, his wounds had been dire, and while he had killed the attackers, he knew that as he lay on the dirt, he would not be rising. He felt the pain of his death, his lifeblood dripping from his gaping wounds, his hand feebly attempting to keep his intestines inside his body. When he finally gasped his last breath, he knew it was over. And yet, instead of ascending to heaven as he had assumed, he was graced with a vision of two women on horseback, traveling across a vast expanse of forest. He was left with the impression that the women were far away, somewhere east of where he was. When he woke, gasping for breath, uninjured yet covered in the gore of his own insides, he knew that something was awry, but had no idea the meaning behind his continued existence. He cleaned himself off as best he could, and headed for home, knowing his mother and siblings would welcome him home, unaware of his recent disembowelment. 

For the next week, he tested the bounds of his new healing, going so far as breaking his own bones, but unwilling to actually die fully, at least not on purpose. The dreams of the women continued, and he could tell that they were moving across the land, but still far from him. And then one night, his dreams changed. A new figure took the place of the woman, a beautiful devil, an invader began to infiltrate his nights. These new dreams were brighter, closer, and the sites were familiar. Worst of all, twice the people he saw fall to the invader's blade were acquaintances of his. The invader was moving ever close to Yusuf's home. At last, Yusuf thought he might know the purpose of his new blessed life. Perhaps it was to end this invader, as he could not imagine attempting to do anything less than take vengeance for the death and destruction this invader brought ever closer to his home.

****************

It would be months of dreams for both men. All the times of seeing snippets of the other's life always interspersed with snippets from the two women who rode distantly through a forest, who seemed to enjoy each other's company while they traveled. The women were always distant, the dreams less intense than those the men had of each other.

Nicolo saw the dark-haired man's family, siblings, nieces, and nephews attempting to go about their lives as the crusaders came ever closer, the battle ever nearer. They spoke in a language he had no understanding of. He saw snippets of this unearthly beauty, and often woke with his cock straining in his bedroll. He knew that the thoughts were sinful, but he couldn't help himself. Surely this man, these dreams, were brought to him by the devil to tempt him to sin. Why did God return him to life to suffer in this battle and combat these unholy desires? The breaking point for Nicolo was when he woke from his dream of the dark-haired man having a tryst in an alleyway with another man! This dark-haired man was undoubtedly a devil if he was willing to lie with other men. The only conclusion Nicolo could draw was that God meant to tempt him and to finally be able to enter heaven, surely Nicolo must slay this devil. And yet, Nicolo thought he might not have the resolve to do so. Not when also saw how soft the man was with his family, or how the man worked to ensure the children were safe. Nicolo tried to put those facts our his mind, and began seeking out more information on the language that his devil spoke, picking up words here and there, hungry for more details. The simple fact that Nicolo was dreaming in a language he did not speak but it was a real language, and one he was learning in small pieces, only reaffirmed that God brought him true dreams. He tried in vain to convince himself that all this intimate knowledge of his foe was simply to help him locate and slay this devil. 

Yusuf also dreamed of his sun-kissed invader. Yusuf, who was much traveled and spent time as a guard for merchants in the past, did know a lot of the language the invader spoke. His invader was well placed in the enemy's army, and Yusuf was able to glean useful information from his dreams. Information that proved that his invader must be an actual living person. Yusuf was working furiously on a plan to end the invader. Yusuf's own immortality had made him reckless and brash, taking risks that a normal, sane person would never consider. Yusuf did observe some kind acts from his invader, but overall, the man spent much of his time fighting on the battlefield or helping to plan attacks. The dreams of this man were very bloody and full of death. Still, Yusuf had not seen the invader die in these dreams, although admittedly, he had been injured. Yusuf was reasonably sure his invader went by the name of Nicolo, but he had not confirmed it.

And finally, after months of dreaming, the army that contained his invader arrived at the walls of his home. Yusuf felt he had no choice but to steal out into the night and locate his invader and slit his throat in the dead of night. It was not the noblest of plans, but if his reason for his new life was to kill this man, who was Yusuf to argue? He dressed carefully, wanting to blend into the army as much as possible. His dreams lead him easily to the tent where the sun-kissed invader slept, and it was simple enough to slip inside. He finally laid eyes upon the man who had haunted his dreams for these past strange months. A warm feeling of familiarity washed over him as he looked upon his face, and Yusuf hesitated, knife poised. And then those beautiful blue-green eyes opened and met Yusuf's. For a second, neither man moved, frozen by the immensity of the moment. And then, sense returned. Yusuf lunged forward, and Nicolo struggled from his blanket to pull his own knife from next to his bedroll. The men rolled together, stabbing at one another, but neither called out or screamed for help, and the sounds of men around the camp drowned out the sounds of their conflict. Eventually, Yusuf managed to slit the throat of the invader. In a final act, Nicolo brought his knife down into the eye of his devil. Nicolo collapsed in death on top of his devil.

Yusuf had a slight advantage of age and had died a few times since his birth into immortality, versus Nicolo, who had managed to avoid death since that first fighting experience. Perhaps that is why Yusuf gasped back to life first. Nicolo laid on top of him, and was still, his eyes open, unseeing in death. Yusuf pushed the body of the once beautiful man off of himself and pulled himself into a crouch. Killing the man did not return Yusuf to a mortal state. He blinked rapidly in confusion as vision returned to his newly healed eye.

And then, much to Yusuf's shock, his sun-kissed invader took a gasping breath, and also blinked himself back to life. In a moment of panic, Yusuf simply stabbed the man before he could regain any semblance of awareness. As Nicolo gurgled unpleasantly in death for the second time in a few short minutes, Yusuf fled into the night.

Their next encounter was overly dramatic, as they finally met one another on the battlefield. It seemed as if the battlefield fell away from them, and they had only eyes for each other. They engaged in an epic battle. Their fight gradually moved them away from the primary battle: each sword thrust and parry punctuated with sharp sounds of effort or pain. When one would fall, the other would wait for their opponent to rise again, and the battle would continue. This went on well into the night, long after their comrades had moved away until the two combatants were the only ones around.

Finally, Yusuf had enough and held his hands up in surrender, dropping his weapon to the ground. The invader paused and then gutted Yusuf for what must have been the third time that day. Yusuf fell, and finally, spoke the first words of the day.

"So, what next? Will you behead me again? Shall we fight on for eternity on this field?" Yusuf murmured as death closed in on him again, for only Allah knew how many times he had died this day. And when breath returned to him, he found his invader, his Nicolo, sitting in the dirt next to him, his hand close to Yusuf's head.

"I thought God wanted me to slay the tempting devil in my dreams," Nicolo spoke slowly, meeting Yusuf's eyes, "but if that is the reason for my returning again and again to this life, to end yours, then surely I should have accomplished it by now. Yet we both seem blessed, or perhaps cursed, but this same affliction. I know not why." 

"I do not know the reason either, but this is surely not it. Perhaps it is time we seek it?" Yusuf asked as he rose carefully to his feet.

"Together?" Nicolo questioned quietly, looking up into the tempting face of his dreams. Yusuf smiled down at him and held his hand out to Nicolo. And Nicolo gave into his yearning to touch the devil and took his hand. He rose, and together, they left the battlefield in their wake. 

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and Kudos are love.  
> I am working on another one, that will be fine as a stand-alone but also a sequel to this fic. I created the series to help people find the sequel once it is complete. It's going to be a 5 and 1 with Nicky being tempted by Joe, and track their journey from friends to lovers.   
> Not really beta read, all mistakes are my own.


End file.
